Three months and counting since I arrived in this place and time. I’ve seen Christmas, New Years 2008 and (already) countless festivals announced day, night, weekend and 5am in the dark of morning by cohetes (sizable aerial bombs) and music, parades in honor of everybody from Saint Agnus to the patron saint of bartenders (I kid you not).

So, how’s it going? – well, it goes and some days it doesn’t go at all, like today I did zip but sit in the sun and talk to my neighbor and upload pics of Winter flowers to the blog. (you folks in snow country don’t want to miss them they’re great) We have become cat central, Max is master of the interior domain; OW is alpha cat of the great outdoors and is now being joined by gray and gray/white, so, never a dull moment. The possums pretty much got all the cherie moya fruit, but we found some avocados they missed and snagged them down, just a typical day in January – in Mexico that is.

Let’s continue with some observations and of course how could I not talk about traffic. I’ve decided that traffic here in MX is more what you could call “free form”. The speed limit signs are more advisory than mandated or restrictive. Here at the lake we have three kinds of drivers, local folk, impatient Tapatios and befuddled gringos. Locals are pretty laid back and in no big hurry, they have no problem pulling into the opposing lane of traffic around 2 or 3 cars stopped at a light to make an illegal left turn onto Colon (no left turn allowed). Then there are the Tapatios, a title assigned to those from Guadalajara and I’ve already covered their driving styles. The problem is they continue to drive that way here at the lake when they come to visit, passing every chance they get to gain nothing, tail gating to inhale exhaust first hand etc., much much too impatient. Then finally the befuttled gringos, generally a laid back retired lot in no big hurry to get anywhere and generally determined to stay inside the law, but caught in-between the two opposing native factions – and me? I just shake my head and smile and wait for the mêlée to clear then drive on like nothing serious happened; because it didn’t.

Next I want to congratulate Mexican technology on making things thin. Here they have mastered the art of thin; making plastic trash bags so thin you can read the fine print on the labels of cans you just threw away, they make paper towels so thin they static cling to whatever you’re trying to wipe up and TP? – let’s not even go there. Actually is not all that bad, conserving resources and keeping things affordable for the populous is necessary, but at times a bit of a frustration to us gringos used to sturdy stuff.

There’s an old adage that goes something like: Don’t compare yourself to others for you will become vain and jealous as there will always be those with more than you and those with less. I’ve always lived by that and while never a member of the privileged I always had a good home and in my adult life did well and lived comfortably. In my work and personal life I never looked up or down and didn’t feel superior or subordinated.

With that in mind, let’s talk a moment about things that are hard to get accustomed to here, beginning with the people and their work ethic. The stereotypical image of Mexicans is untrue in my observations, limited as they are. The people here work long and hard to make a living as best they can and in GDL it often involves selling things in the streets by walking between cars stopped at lights breathing the dust and exhaust. Then the thing that really tears at your heart, driving down a smaller side street and stopping for a light and there she is, a little old lady, holding out a basket of chewing gum, or some other trivial thing for you to buy. She’s bent and old, but needing to eat for another day and you can’t get the image of her out of your mind as you drive away in your fancy SUV with more change in your ashtray than she’ll see in a day or two. You can’t forget her because you’ve seen that look on the face of your Mother, your Grandmother and this is the last place you’d want to see them - selling chewing gum – yet there they are.

Maybe for the first time in my life I’m being subjected to the obvious fact that I do live in a vastly different world than most of the native people around me and at times it’s uncomfortable and yet at times it can have a happy result.

They say it’s better to give than to receive so let me tell two parts of a story and then join them. First of all, my gardener Pedro and his wife Lupe are wonderful people, working hard and long to provide for their sizable family and always cheerful and happy to help us learn new words and about plants etc. I’m often first aware that Pedro is here working when I hear him whistling as he tends the trees and flowers. By law workers receive a Christmas bonus or aguinaldo which is based on years of service etc. But beyond that most people give gifts of money or things they know the families need and can use and so it was this year.

And, gringo shopping here often means going to 3 different stores to acquire the things we are used to and can readily afford. Soriana is the larger of the stores and more like a WalMart out of the 70’s with groceries. When you purchase things they give you points which accumulate and can be redeemed in merchandise, they’re tracked on a card and build up relatively quickly and as I’ve had to buy a number of things since arriving my card was significant.

So, a couple of days before New Years I took my card and gave it to Pedro with a note, translated into Spanish. saying it was for his family and that if he had any trouble using it to come to me and I’d go with him. About 2 days after New Years, as I was leaving one afternoon, he came to me and started telling me how he and Lupe had gone to Soriana and his eyes were bigger than saucers and he gestured with his hands that the store was “grande” with so many things. I suddenly realized that they had probably never been there and for them it was more than being able to buy things, it was an adventure of sorts and we shook hands and hugged (they're big on hugging down here) and I knew at that moment it was true, it's better to give than to receive, but I also suddenly felt uncomfortable in some way that I’ve still not resolved within myself, more on that next time.

I’ll close this by simply saying that in general I believe I’m beginning to understand that paradise is what you make of it, it’s more a state-of-mind than a terrestrial place on the map.